Status: 05.01.2023 2:47 p.m
Federal Family Minister Paus calls for the abolition of paragraph 218 of the penal code – and thus general impunity for abortions. The proposal is viewed with skepticism within the coalition.
Federal Family Minister Lisa Paus (Greens) is pushing for the abolition of paragraph 218 of the Criminal Code, which criminalizes abortion. It’s about fundamental, existential questions, it’s about the human right to reproductive self-determination and the right of women to decide about their bodies, the Greens politician told the newspapers of the Funke media group. For them, the penal code is “not the right place to regulate it.”
Paus: End of stigma
“Who else but the pregnant women themselves should decide whether they want to or can carry a child? Who else but the women themselves should decide when and at what intervals they have children?” Paus asked. In addition to access to safe and affordable contraceptives, the cornerstone of the human right to reproductive self-determination is the guarantee of abortions and self-determined and safe pregnancy and childbirth. “Women who perform abortions should no longer be stigmatized,” said the minister.
In the past few months, the coalition partner SPD has repeatedly called for the complete abolition of paragraph 218 – for example from Juso boss Jessica Rosenberg and from the Bundestag member Cansel Kiziltepe.
The traffic light coalition therefore wants to examine during this legislative period what regulations for abortion outside the criminal code could look like. To this end, a commission for reproductive self-determination and reproductive medicine will be set up “to clarify precisely these highly complex legal issues,” announced Paus.
Concerns in the coalition
However, the initiative by the Federal Minister for Family Affairs is met with concerns in the coalition: The current criminal law paragraph represents “a successful compromise as the result of a long social discussion”, said the legal policy spokeswoman for the FDP parliamentary group, Katrin Helling-Plahr. “For ethical and constitutional reasons, I am extremely skeptical about abandoning the compromise,” she added.
The coalition is also working “at full speed” to end so-called sidewalk harassment of pregnant women. What is meant by this are protest actions by abortion opponents, for example in front of pregnancy conflict counseling centers, hospitals or medical practices. “I would like to regulate this in 2023 with an extension of the Pregnancy Conflict Act in order to expressly stipulate unhindered access to the counseling centers by law,” said the minister. The creation of a new administrative offense is also being considered, and your house is in talks with the Ministry of the Interior and Justice.
Vote on new regulation still pending
According to the current regulation, abortions are generally punishable in Germany, but remain exempt from punishment under certain conditions – including after mandatory counseling and if they are carried out up to the 12th week of pregnancy.
The appointment of the commission to discuss a new regulation was agreed in the coalition agreement between the SPD, the Greens and the FDP. So far, however, it is unclear when the committee will actually start its work. When asked, the Federal Ministry of Health stated that the vote within the federal government on the commission had not yet been completed. A specific date for the establishment of the Commission has not yet been set.